The APUO is alarmed to learn of several program suspensions1 in the Faculty of Arts, in many cases without prior, meaningful, consultation with the appropriate Departmental Assembly.
Take Action
In response to this attack on collegial governance, members are mobilizing. Our colleagues in the Department of Classics and Religious Studies have reacted by launching an open letter asking the Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs to establish a commission to study the place of the humanities at the university. We invite you to show your support by filling out this form.
Too often, the Employer implements such decisions without warning or meaningful consultation, and without communicating to the university community. If you are aware of a program suspension in your department, we urge you to share it with the APUO at apuo@apuo.ca. The union can support you in mobilizing a response and connect you with colleagues fighting for a university that offers a broad variety of programs in various disciplines.
More Context
Some 26 programs in the Faculty of Arts have now had their student registrations suspended. Many of these suspensions were implemented without meaningfully consulting departments in question. Historically, student registration suspensions have led to the elimination of a program.
Members in the Department of Classics and Religious Studies were quick to mobilize a response, which included the open letter mentioned above, a successful media campaign, and coordination with members on the Senate to oppose the suspension. Thanks to these actions, the Faculty of Arts reversed its decision to suspend the honours program in Greek and Roman studies.
As you may recall, the APUO presented language on program amalgamations, mergers and suspensions during the 2024-2025 round of collective bargaining, which the Employer categorically refused. This language would have ensured that any amalgamation, merger or suspension of academic programs require meaningful, consultation with the appropriate Departmental Assembly, the Chair, the Faculty Executive Committee and the appropriate Faculty Council before ultimately being approved at the Senate. Such checks and balances are at the very core of the collegial governance we have been advocating for.
We also tried to negotiate the concept of uOttawa being a “comprehensive university” into the Collective Agreement. This would explicitly recognize that teaching and research must cover the main fields of knowledge, in line with developments in the various disciplines, and that interdisciplinarity is an asset to be preserved.Earlier this semester, the APUO’s Executive Committee had an introductory meeting with the new university President, during which we underscored the importance of collegial governance and transparency. We will continue advocating for these priorities, particularly as we head into our next round of collective bargaining.
1. The suspension of a program is defined as suspending student registrations.